Viewpoint: The value of on-campus jobs

Working on campus could help you make connections with students and professors while earning some cash.

“Take advantage of all the internships you can!”

“Our school has X (ridiculously high) percentage of students who complete an internship.”

“You have to intern every semester starting your freshman year or else you’ll live in a box your entire life.”

These statements, aside from the slightly exaggerated third one, are things prospective students hear during campus visits, preview days and freshman orientations from peppy student leaders and professors alike. It’s easy to see how this rhetoric has led to the internship rat race that can be found at most universities, especially those in cities.

In today’s competitive job market, the perceived importance of undergraduate internships increases every year. But the pursuit of internships isn’t entirely about necessity. The idea of gaining practical knowledge in a field of interest is understandably appealing. It’s easy for high school seniors to be caught up in daydreams about writing articles for The New York Times or sitting in on meetings with a senator.

But those of us who have interned know that these type of undergraduate internships are few and far between. Many interns are stuck with menial tasks, such as making copies, entering data into Excel and Googling things. Because interns often aren’t given significant amounts of work and responsibility, this can make interns feel like they are a waste of space and that the only benefit of their experience is the future spot it will fill on their resume. Add the fact that most internships are unpaid, and it’s hard to understand why everyone at orientation hyped them up so much.

I don’t mean to completely knock internships. I’ve been lucky to have had both substantive and paid internships and I know of many friends with similar experiences. But there is a worthwhile alternative to an internship: an on-campus job.

Most students know about jobs like resident assistant, orientation leader and tour guide, but other organizational and coordinator-type positions are less popular. Here are a few of the benefits of a part-time university job as opposed to an off-campus internship:

• Skills

As someone who has worked both on and off campus, I can honestly say I’ve gained the most practical skills from my university jobs. I’ve had more independence and responsibility on campus than I did at any of my internships. At school, I’ve been put in charge of personally planning events, executing campaigns and leading groups through programs — rare tasks for an undergraduate intern. While prestige and name-brand recognition are important, the skills you develop are much more valuable than a title.

• Insider knowledge

A university job offers you behind-the-scenes access into the place where you live, study and socialize. You’ll learn tons of general knowledge about your institution, but you’ll also start to figure out the shortcuts and tricks of your school that will help make your life a little easier.

• Networking

People who work in higher education are some of friendliest, craziest and downright coolest people I’ve ever met. They’re also extremely helpful when it comes to getting recommendations and finding out about future opportunities. Even if you don’t want to pursue a career in higher education, the industry’s diversity makes forging connections that much easier. And assuming your on-campus job is substantive, a recommendation letter detailing how you coordinated a program for 600 participants is much stronger than one about your phone-answering ability.

• Friends

I’ve made some of my best friends through on-campus jobs. Nothing brings people together like staying up late to finish stuffing folders, dealing with a mass email crisis or trying (and failing) to do the Dougie in front of the entire freshman class. Also, the friends you make through your on-campus jobs are most likely people you would have never met otherwise and people you can easily find and spend time with after the job is over.

• Money

You will most likely be paid for your on-campus job. If you aren’t, you’ll probably get free housing or something similar. Working on-campus is also great if you have federal work study (FWS), but many schools have positions even for non-FWS students. You won’t need to spend much on transportation if you live on or near campus. And if your school is like mine, there will be more free food lying around than you could have ever imagined, saving you countless hours and dollars on making lunch. This alone should make you consider an on-campus job.

Thomas Cheng is an American University senior double majoring in criminal justice and strategic communication. After graduating this May, he will be moving to China to participate in a two-year teaching program.